It's gonna fill the same niche as a 22 fret PRS (same style, scale, types of materials) and Carvin makes some damn nice instruments, especially from the perspective of someone like me (read: poor college student). I don't think you would regret it.

If you like the Carvin flavor, go for it...it sure isn't PRS or Gibson tonally, but some people seem to be BIG fanboys.

Personally I can't stand the neck carve, electronics and hardware, not to mention I'd prefer my LPs, PRS SCs any day of the week for tone & playability.

The only upside I can see here is a slight price difference & the Stainless Steel fret option...in fact I've built a couple of Warmoths & USACG axes for just that reason.

I'd probably give a Carvin a try if I wasn't so insulted by them forcing their crap PUPs on me...the dam PUP rings aren't even drilled the same as std. HBs, so you end-up re-drilling new holes & some PUPs like Rios & Anderson won't fit in the shallow cavities.

Originally posted by toby b. i've heard good and bad things about their pup's. do they make a decent pup? it looks like i could upgrade to a hotter setup.

so there you go. i'm on the fence. right now, the only thing stopping me is the pup thing.

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FWIW, I do know that their pups fit perfectly into standard standard HB spaces. Whether a standard HB would fit in their guitars, I can't say, but I bet a look around the Carvin forum would get ya the answer.

Originally posted by toby b. i've heard good and bad things about their pup's. do they make a decent pup? it looks like i could upgrade to a hotter setup.

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They switched the standard bridge pickup a while back, from the C22T, which simply wasn't a good pickup, to the C22B, which is much better - it's not some fancy custom wound thing, but it'll hang with production pickups (SDs, Dimarzios, so forth) without breaking a sweat.

I have, though, seen more than a few Carvins where someone's switched out the pickups without an issue or redrilling - some replacement rings fit, others don't.

I really like their single coils, but you wouldn't have single coils on it anyhow so that's something of a moot point for this discussion.

Carvin's C22B (new standard bridge) and M22T are quite good. The C22N neck is good in some guitars, not others. I like the M22V which is a more open sounding neck pickup somewhat like an SD Alnico 2 Pro.

A CT6 is my current main guitar and previously played LPs and PRS. It's a great guitar for the money and I'm very happy with the platability, feel and tone and customizability. I'd DEFINATELY recommend giving them a shot.

Originally posted by robmarch I think the 6 string pickup cavities work with aftermarket pickups, it's the 7 string cavities that might require some tweaking, from memory of what I've read.

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Yeah, the 6 string cavities are the right size - the only issue is that the mounting rings use three screws on the pickup, rather than two, which means that you need either a different mounting ring or some detail work with a drill on the new pickup.

Originally posted by Antero Yeah, the 6 string cavities are the right size - the only issue is that the mounting rings use three screws on the pickup, rather than two, which means that you need either a different mounting ring or some detail work with a drill on the new pickup.

I've been looking into it, 'cause I've got a hankering for a P90.

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Actually, I'm not sure about CT pickup mtg. rings, but earlier Carvin PUP rings didn't line-up at all with the body screw pattern on standard Gibby PUP rings, although I heard someone made custom rings for that purpose...

Originally posted by Gary Ladd Actually, I'm not sure about CT pickup mtg. rings, but earlier Carvin PUP rings didn't line-up at all with the body screw pattern on standard Gibby PUP rings, although I heard someone made custom rings for that purpose...

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this is because most carvins are flat tops and most gibby's are arch tops. makes sense they wouldn't line up right. the whole pup ring won't sit right on the gibby's.

I'm a Les Paul guy but I thought I wanted a PRS so I was in the market. I played over a dozen and was just about to drop some serious money on one when I realized I needed a guitar with a Floyd Rose and my PRS plans were put aside. On a complete whim, I ordered this:

It's a beautiful guitar and I think I prefer it to most of the PRS guitars I was considering. This may have to do with the longer scale. I'm still in love with the sound of my Les Pauls, but this Carvin seems more alive than most of the PRSs I played. Granted, there were some really nice PRSs that I would own in a heartbeat, I just needed a Floyd and this guitar fit the bill. Carvin and PRS are two completely different animals. All I am really adding is that my new Carvin has certainly exceeded my expectations.

Carvin makes both their pickups & mtg. rings SMALLER than standard (Dimarzio, SD, Gibson etc) so you're more or less stick with Carvin PUPs unless you want to drill some new holes into your axe and probably rout the body to boot!

EMG, SD, Dimarzio and most other pickups companies follow the Gibson PAF size which IS the industry standard for humbucker size. I know Carvin has been around longer than the PAFs. But it is undeniable that the PAF has become the standard HB size for all companies.

Carvin have no problems recognizing industry standards with their Bolt pickguards, jack plates and single coils (which follow Fender standards), or even with their rackmount stuff (which will mount on any standard rack) only the humbuckers have the size issue - why?

Also, the comparison with the car industry is a bad one since the car industry is the biggest rip-off ever. Customers often have to pay outrageous prices for their car's original parts since there is no competition.
Sorry, but I think Carvin is a lot better than any car company out there.

Nobody is asking Carvin to start making Les Paul copies or PAF copies, Carvin guitars are unique and I like that, but making your pickups fit the standard mounting rings would make your customers' life a lot easier, which translates to good customer service.

Plus, I think your pickup sales would also increase since more people playing other companies' guitars would be able to try a Carvin pickup on their guitars without any major modifications.